Progress is progress no matter how small. This is one thing I have learned since my brain surgery.
Last week I finished occupational therapy and I will be done in home physical therapy this week.
I will be moving on to on site physical therapy which will be more intense than I’ve done at home, but that’s a good thing, it means I’m progressing.
I taught training principles when I taught a Personal Fitness class. One of those training principles is one called Diminished Returns. One part of this principle is that once you reach a certain fitness level, you have to work even harder to achieve benefits. Elite athletes train at a very high level because they are so fit. Now I am far from an elite or even an athlete right now, but I have advanced from in home physical therapy to more challenging on site therapy. I’m worried it will wear me out, but the only way I can get stronger is to push myself even harder.
One of the first tests I had to do with occupational therapy was where I start sitting in a chair. I had to get up, walk 10 steps (essentially the length of our hall upstairs), turn around and sit back down in the chair. The first time I did this test in early May, it took me 27 seconds. Then I got down to 12 seconds early June and down to 9 seconds last week. That time means I am no longer a fall risk. Progress was made over these two months and feels great.
While the on site physical therapy may be more difficult and more tiring, it’s just like any workout or exercise where we feel better afterwards. It’s how we get better and stronger. It will take more time to drive on site and require more help since I can’t drive myself, but I need to do what I can to continue to make progress and get stronger. I still don’t have a lot of endurance but I know that will take time and be the last thing to come.
I know I still have a long way to go but I also need to remind myself of how far I’ve come. The 10 step test from OT is just one example of the progress I have made in two months. I was so limited when I first started physical and occupational therapy. To see where I am now compared to then is pretty remarkable and shows that the hard work is paying off. Each step forward is progress and I need to focus on continuing to get stronger and able to do more.
I’ve moved up some and still have some more moving to do. One step at a time, one day at a time.
#brainsurgery #occupationaltherapy #physicaltherapy #movingforward #gettingstronger